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Pizza Passion

It all started with lunch. Ten or so years ago. Picture it, Dupont Circle, Washington DC….Pizzeria Paradiso. A wood fired pizza oven blazed in the background while we awaited its tasty contents. I was mesmerized. Upon our return to NYC, I obsessed over Google research about wood fired ovens for home use. It turns out that there is a fairly large community out there in cyberspace who share stories and recipes all centering around their wood fired ovens! Who knew.

At Pizzeria Paradiso, I decided at that moment, that one day, I too would have a wood fired oven in a kitchen. I didn’t know where the kitchen would be located, but I knew, as I know my own skin, that wood fired cooking would be the star attraction.

And it is. Fast forward ten years, to Erwinna PA, and my Mugnaini pizza oven turns out the most delicious pizzas this side of Naples. A bit of flour, a bit of obsession and the belief that throwing something out into the universe is a powerful exercize.

Mugnaini Imports specializes in the importing of Valoriani ovens from Italy. The ovens are made of refractory clay and are shipped from a distribution center in California. The oven itself comes disassembled, and with the assistance of a stone mason, can be built free standing outside or as an addition to your current kitchen.

Fueled by hardwood, the oven reaches optimum temperature in about two hours, after which it will bake pie after pie in about three minutes. This is the uber kitchen appliance. I am so grateful to have one and it just thrills me to fill the house with people and let them share in the experience. It’s cooking the way it used to be, and the smell of embers and ash all add to the feel of it. It’s just indescribable.